Timed Challenge: X Men
by Konsui's Little Brother
Summary: I put my Mp3 player on random and wrote until the song ended. They are all for different characters, different times, different plots, and are in no way related.
1. Chapter 1

A/N: A challenge that I did with my sister. We used songs from her Mp3 player and we only had until the song ended to write our little drabble-things up. I may make several of these into longer fics and post them as their own stories. There will be more chapters to this.

Next order of business...These were written in a time-limit so they are rushed, most aren't ended where I wanted them to end, and they might sound odd. I already know that. I am however, still happy with them and would love reviews.

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Burning Down The House by The Used

_Click._ The lighter had been his fathers, a stupid bloke if there ever was one, and Pyro had gotten it back when he was still St. John. In fact, he had gotten it the day that the Voice appeared.

His parents had gone to bed early, and John couldn't sleep. So he'd gone down stairs in search of something to do. It was his parents fault really. They knew that he had an obsession with flames, the lighter shouldn't have been left out on the kitchen table.

And then, it wasn't really John's fault that he had grabbed the lighter either. It was the Voice. He had told him to do it, had told him that he wouldn't get in trouble, and the flame was just so pretty.

Why Does This Always Happen To Me by Wierd Al Yankovich

Rouge was having a fued with Kitty. Pyro and Bobby were playing 'Mutantball' with each other. The very expansive vase in the front hall had been shattered into a million pieces when Amara scared Jamie, the younger of the two having spooked and 'multiplied', knocking over the vase.

And all of the teachers, including the very patient Xavier, were in bed sound asleep except for Storm. As usual. It always played out like this, she was always the one stuck getting the children ready for school on Monday, and she was always the one that got stuck with cleaning up after them.

Evan fell asleep at the table, head hitting his plate of pnacakes with a 'splack' noise. Scott yelled at everyone to get to the car before they made him late. Ray gave him the finger. There was a crashing noise as Kurt fell off of the chandelier and Storm wondered why she was still the sanest teacher there.

Strange by The Doors

He was sure that it was just because he was lost in an unfamialer town, maybe because he missed his mother still, but Jamie was sure that it shouldn't have been like this. He was almost 13, he shouldn't have been so scared of everyone here that the smallest noise spooked him into 'multiplying'. But he was. He was different even here, he was 'strange', and so were his powers.

Doctor Online by Zero-Mancer

The day was suppossed to be something that they celebrated, something that the whole Brotherhood would enjoy. The Apocolapse. It should have been all of them there, all of them, not just him.

But it was.

His sister had gone off with the X-Geeks when she heard they were going after their father. Lance had left to help Kitty, he couldn't stand to leave her to fight on her own. Toad had dissapeared too, gone after the Fuzz-Butt probably, and Blob had left with him. IT wasn't what he had been expecting.

There was a clicking noise as Pietro put his phone, down.

Your Never Over by Eminem

It was odd really. The one person that had believed he could be something different. Be stronger than he acted now. And they were on the other side.

They'd been enemies to begin with, now they were the best of friends, and they were being seperated again.

The whole of the X-Mansion was being sent off to fight the Apocalypse, something that he had played a hand in starting, and Toad was stuck sitting at home. Lance wasn't going with them, none of them were, and he couldn't stop thinking about the others... He couldn't just sit their and watch him go off to his death, he could hear the jet starting from in his house, as he stood up.

He couldn't let them leave! He was going after them, becaus ehe'd faught all of their enemies before, he knew their weaknesses. He could help because it wasn't over and it never would be.

Slaughter Your World by Looking For Group

It was beyond Logan why anyone would do risk their lives for a prank, a stupid prank at that, but one of his students had.

He had woken up that morning, not to his alarm like normally, but to a horrible rendition of a disney song blasting through his door. A horrible, horrible, disney song that someone clearly had gotten from the internet.

At least, when he first heard the song he thought it had been a student. Imagine his surprise when all of the students, when threatened with extra danger room sessions, pointed to Storm as a group.

The Weather Witch had very nearly collapsed to the ground in a fit of giggles.

Horchata by Vampire Week-End

It was one of those week-ends where everything just seemed right. A sunny day, no clouds insight, school was out, and the teachers had cancelled all training sessions for a group trip to the beach.

While the children played in the sand, and out in the water, the teachers sat at a nearby 'bar' sipping at some fruity drink or another. Yes, it was one of those days were everything just seemed to be perfect.

Hands Clean by Alanis Morecette

The days went by quickly, quicker than either of them thought it would be, but things hadn't really changed. They were still the best of friends, Kurt and him, and no one else knew.

It was funny, ironic really, because he could have sworn that things would have ended badly. After all, they were so different. But the X-Geek had washed his hands, and he had too, and the two stuck together. And it was ironic because Kurt lived with a bunch of psychics and they didn't know.

Not that they were suppossed to. No one else was suppossed to know, because it was a messy friendship and others knowing would only make it worse, but it worked.


	2. Chapter 2

A/N: Okay...Remind me to never use my own Mp3 player for this again. I give you a bunch of sappy little fics, most of which will eventually be turned into longer stories, that I'm almost ashamed to have written. I can't believe that these were the songs my Mp3 player decided to give me!

Thank you to everyone that has read this story, and the wonderful person that reviewed it, you can all expect more chapters sometime in the future.

If you want certain ones made longer, let me know! I'd love the feed-back!

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It's Not Me It's You: Skillet

They all acted like it was his fault that they had lost, his fault that the X-Geeks had won again, his fault that everything had gone wrong. That their life had turned into one giant, stinkin' pile of crap.

It happened everytime that they lost, everytime that they faught the X-Men, and he was so tired of it!

It was them, not him! It was the rest of the Brotherhood, with their stupid short attention spans and their petty fueds, not him. He was the only one that actually tried!

They didn't get that though. They didn't care. Blaming him was just an excuse so they didn't actually have to blame themselves. And it wasn't going to change.

Whiskey Lullaby: Alison Krauss

She had dumped him so easily, so quickly, that it proved to Lance she hadn't actually cared. He was just an excuse until she found someone better, until she found someone that had more money and wasn't 'just a hood'. She didn't realize that she was his whole world and he couldn't live without her.

Kitty had felt so horrible, so ashamed of herself, when she heard the news. She spent years, more years then any one knew, trying to convince herself that she could go on. That he wasn't all she needed to get by. But it was just a lie. She knew it was.

It wasn't until she realized she couldn't go on any longer, couldn't keep moving forewards, that they were able to forgive each other. They were each others whole worlds, their lives, their reason for living. And they were together again.

Cowgirls Don't Cry: Brookes And Dunne

Her father had always told her not to cry when she was upset, told her that nothing could hold her down but her. And she knew that he was right, after all, if she just gave up and cried than she would never get anywhere.

That was the mantra she lived by, 'things'll get tough but don't cry, don't give up'. And then her life fell apart. She was a mutant, she would never have that dream family she'd wanted. And she didn't shed a tear, didn't let her parents know how much she hurt, didn't let anyone know. Because her father had taught her better.

And than she got a call from her mother. Her father was sick, had been sick for a long time, and he wanted to speak with her 'one last time'. And he told her, 'Nothing can hold you down if you don't give up. Don't cry my little Cowgirl, don't cry.' And she didn't.

A Different World: Bucky Covington

He had never had any of these issues when he was a child. There were no child-proof lids on pill bottles, there was no law saying that you had to wear a helmet when you biked. There were no such things as video games, at least nothing like there was now. No, it was a different world when Xavier was growing up.

There was no silly law telling you that you couldn't say the Pledge Of Aligance, nothing telling you that you couldn't pray in school. There weren't kids fighting with each other to get a place on a school team, or fights over the clothes you wore. It was a different world when Ororo grew up.

Just A Dream: Carrie Underwood

She had spent her whole life planning for this moment, the day when she would get married. Kitty had turned 18 two weeks ago, dressed in her mothers wedding gown with a pair of Storm's blue high-heels. The box of letters that he had sent her sat in the seat next to her.

The church was beautiful, and as she walked inside she pulled the veil over her head. There was no reason for everyone to see her crying. But she couldn't help it.

Storm led everyone in Amazing Grace, the saddest song that she had ever heard, and the line of mutants beside her let off a blast of their powers.

She couldn't see anything anymore. Everything got fuzzy and her legs fell out from under her. This wasn't how things were supposed to go. Lance wasn't supposed to leave her, they were supposed to be together forever. But they wouldn't be and everyone but her had already accepted that fact.

She shook her head, the tears staining her white gown, and tried to tell her self that it wasn't true. It was just a dream. Lance wasn't dead and when she woke up they would get married, just like they had planned. It was just a dream.

"Just a dream."

A Good Man: Emerson Drive

He didn't need any money, didn't need a lot of food, just enough to get his friends through the next few days. It was simple, not complicated in the least.

All he wanted to do was live a 'good life'. He didn't want to be a 'hood', didn't want to be a 'bad guy'.

He used to dream of being a rock-star, of having a nice car, of living in a big mansion somewhere with a family that loved him. With friends that cared for him.

Now all he wants is for the people he lives with to know that he's not 'bad'. Just trying to get by and live life like everyone else.

Moments: Emerson Drive

He hadn't always been a good-for-nothing punk. Hadn't always been a thief. Hadn't always been so hard up for...everything. Lance'd had his moments. He'd had times when he shined brighter than anyone thought capable. Like the day he saved Kitty, almost died for her. It was what kept him warm.

He hadn't always been such a low-life. Hadn't always been so grungy. Hadn't always smoked. Hadn't always been like he was now. Todd'd had his moments. He'd been braver than the X-Geeks at times. Like when he faced Magneto to save Wanda. His Wanda, his Muffin, even though she wanted nothing to do with him. It didn't matter. It was what kept him going.

And no one would ever know that they'd had their moments, never know that they'd shined brighter than anyone else, never know that they were heroes. Because having those moments to themselves was what kept them going. It let them know that they weren't all bad.

Collapse (Post Amerika): Rise Against

The town had gotten so run down, so dark and dreary and dangerous, that it was hard to even walk through. The humans of Bayville had risen up not too long ago, when the majority of the X-Men had gone...somewhere, and taken the town as their own.

They didn't care that they were ruining the lives of so many, after all, in their minds mutants weren't humans. They were scum. They were the dirt that had no purpose. They had to be destroyed. So Bayville became the FOH's main-base.

And life for everyone, mutant and human, had gone down-hill.

The humans didn't want to admit that they were wrong, didn't want to admit that the mutants weren't all bad, didn't want to back down from the war that they had started. Even though they were destroying themselves, and the earth around them. They were stupid, pathetic creatures and they were too proud too admit that they had made a mistake.


	3. Chapter 3

A/N: Okay...My Mp3 Player has major mood swings. I'm still happy with how this turned out though. ^.^ Hopefully, you do too.

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**_Girls Just Want To Have Fun by Miley Cyrus_**

They had all been tired of the boys getting the credit, of the boys starring in something that they couldn't. They had just wanted a bit of fun, just a bit of time in the spot-light, and Tabby's idea had been the best at the time.

The Bayville Sirens. The time for them to walk in the sun, the time for them to have fun normally reserved for the guys. It was an amazing time and it was theirs.

Of course, they didn't blow off their duties. No, it was something they did at the end of the day, once all of the real work was done. But ,man, it was fun.

**_I Can't Decide by the Sizor Sisters_** (Note: The song had absolutely nothing to do with this piece of work. I don't know where it came from!)

Sure, Alex missed the beaches. And sure, he loved the family that had taken him in. But the Mansion had something that the rest of the world didn't.

And no. He wasn't talking about the 'training', really he couldn't care less about that. And he wasn't talking about knowing there were other mutants here, he wasn't stupid, he knew there were others out rhere like him.

So even though none of that mattered to him, and he missed the beaches back home. He'd stick around for a while. For one simple reason...He hadn't seen so many babes in one spot in a long, long time.

**_Alberqurke by Wierd Al Yankovich_**

It was large and slimey and nasty and green and she hated it! Tabby couldn't stand it. And yet...The school had decided to serve it as their meal, not a side, as the entire meal for lunch that day.

It burbled, a small piece of it raising off of her plate, as she stabbed it with her fork. Not to eat it, no, that foul thing would be getting no where near her mouth. she just wanted to make sure that it was dead. It wasn't.

It seemed to be crawling, the slimey green thing working its way up the fork. She jerked her hand away, dropping the fork in the process, and watched in horror as her lunch devoured the plasticware.

A foul odor started to come from her tray, the greenery slowly writhing on her plate, and Tabby pushed the tray as far away from her as possible. The cafeteria food was by no means good but she still couldn't believe that they would try to pass that off as lunch.

She tore her eyes away from the tray, where the food was now attempting to climb off of the plate, and instead looked at the tables only other ocupant.

Now, she had nothing against Freddy. In fact she thought he was adorable, especially when he got all quiet when she mentioned them dating, but looking at him now...It was just wrong.

"I can't believe that you can actually eat that stuff Freddy." The disgust in her voice was quite obvious.

Across the table Freddy gave her a slow blink, tilting his head to the side slightly, and sitting down his green covered fork. "You don't like saurkrout, Tabby?"

**_Airplanes by B.O.B_**

He liked to pretend that things were different. It was a silly thing to do, because no amount of dreaming would change what had actually happened, but he couldn't help it. There was so much that he had wanted to do, so much that he wanted to be different, but there was nothing he could do.

Airplanes were airplanes, stars were stars, and no amount of wishing was going to change that.

He was a hood. Simple as that. Everyone knew it, his 'friends', his enemies, heck, even he would admit that was the truth. The thing that no one seemed to understand was that he hadn't chosen to be a hood. It was just how he turned out.

So he liked to pretend. Pretend that he had a normal life growing up, that he hadn't moved from place to place, that he had a normal family as a kid, that something about his life had been normal.

But it wasn't and all he can do now is pretend.

**_Like Toy Soldiers by Eminem_**

Everyone thought he was so stuck up. They thought that he didn't care about them, that he couldn't have fun. They thought that he was just trying to make them miserable. He wasn't.

Scott was the leader. The others might not get what that meant, not even Jean knew what it really meant, but he did. It meant that no matter what happened, no matter how much he just wanted to break down, he couldn't. He had to stay strong. He had to keep going. He couldn't look back. He just had to stay in charge.

They were soldiers in a war. He would never admit it to anyone, and he seldom even admitted it in his mind, but he knew it was true. There was a war going on out there, a war between humans and mutants, and they were the toy soldeirs.

They could get knocked down, pushed around, torn to pieces, and no one would care. And someone had to be prepared. Scott wanted the others to have a child-hood, a life that he had never had, but if he did...Someone had to be in charge. Someone had to grow up. Someone had to protect them. And it just happened to be his job.


	4. Chapter 4

A/N: I know, it's been forever. But, no worries, I'm still alive. I also have to say that my Ipod, yes, Ipod and not Mp3 player, gave me some difficult songs to work with this time.

I would also like to point out that I have turned several of the drabbles featured in previous chapters into one-shots and posted them separately._  
_

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_Sk8ter boy by Avril Lavigne -_

He was one of those punks, the type her mom had warned her to stay away from.

She was one of those preps, the type he'd told himself he'd never get involved with.

But they still fell in love. And, because Fate had never liked either of them, they couldn't last. At least, she said they could never last. Her reputation meant too much to her, she couldn't actually be seen with Ray in public.

So Amara left.

Years later, standing on a stage with a pale hand wrapped around his chest, he'd be glad she'd let her friends tell her who to love. After all, if they didn't he would never have met Tabby.

-x-x-

_This Afternoon by Nickleback-_

They didn't have much money, or much of anything really, and what they did have was mostly broken. Their yard was nothing but weeds, their windows all boarded up in a failing attempt to keep the cold out, and they could barely scrape enough money together for rent.

But they did, they were the Brotherhood so they always did.

Things came at them, troubles and fights, and knocked them down. But, on days like these when it was just them and they didn't have to fight or try and get money, it just rolled right off of them.

It wasn't like there was much more for them to do anyways but let it roll off. They couldn't stop it.

So they got up, they brushed themselves off and bandaged themselves up, and, come morning, they were ready to go at it again.

-x-x-

_My Happy Ending by Avril Lavigne_-

He didn't know what brought it on. One moment, the two of them were doing everything together. They were both happy together, the first time in years, and Lance felt at peace. He felt like everything was going great.

And then, without any sort of warning, Kitty had thrown him away. Had hurled words said about himself in confidence back in his face, in the middle of everyone from both teams, and he was alone.

She'd promised they would be together, that what he did and what he'd done didn't matter. But, one look in her anger filled eyes, and Lance knew that what she said had left her mind. She'd lied, had let what the other X-Geeks thought get the best of her, and they were through.

There went his happy ending.

-x-x-

_Meet Virginia by Train_-

Never in a dress, because it wasn't her style, blonde hair hanging loosely around her chin; she was beautiful.

His hair was a mess, his breath smelled of smoke, and his eyes had an almost blood-shot look to them; but she still thought he was beautiful.

Tabby flaunted her stuff, walked the walk, and talked the talk. She wanted to rule it all, to be the 'queen', and that was what was expected of her.

Ray watched her break down, in the privateness of the Brotherhood House roof, and saw the tears stream down her face; black mascara following the salty tracks in an almost macabre pattern. One hand pulled her bangs away from her face, the other snatched the cigarette from his hand, and she a strangled half-there scream bubbled itself from her throat.

She didn't really want to be a queen, she just wanted to live her life.

-x-x-

_Grenade by Bruno Mars_-

Todd knew that she was trouble, that she was bad for his health, and that he should just let her be. The problem was, he couldn't. He couldn't just let her live like that, blaming and hating herself and everyone around her, so he didn't.

Wanda could throw him around as much as she wanted. She could make him bleed, could make him bruise, could break his bones; he wouldn't leave her alone though. He knew she needed her. And, really, he needed her too.

So he'd keep trying. He'd keep throwing himself in harms way for her. And, eventually she'd realize...

She'd realize that his love was real. He wasn't going to leave her, not like everyone else had. No, he would die before that happened. Todd would do anything for her, right up to laying down his life, even though the thought would never cross her mind to do it for him.

-x-x-

_Kings and Queens by 30 Seconds To Mars_-

"I don't get why you're doing this! Fighting us like you do, for him, you're going to end up killing yourself." Scott frowned, lips tugging down slightly, as he moved to stand across the defeated mutants in front of him.

And, really, Lance was going to respond with some snarky comment about how Scott should just butt out and leave them be. But his eyes had seen Kitty's blue ones, wide with fear and curiousity and begging him to tell her, and his voice had caught in his throat.

Imagine his, and everyone elses, surprise when the battered green mutant beside him spoke up instead.

"Tha's just it, yo. You don't get it. Magneto might be a jerk but he's offered us somethin' no one else has." Todd's eyes darted through the scattered X-Men in front of him, pausing on the furry face in the back, before settling on the shade wearing mutant in front of him.

"Oh really? And what's that? Those ridiculous suits you wear or the cops after you all the time?" Scott's voice came out sharp, cold, but disgruntled all the same. He hadn't actually been expecting an answer.

"He gave us a chance."

-x-x-

_Photograph by Nickleback_-

It was one of the few things Jaime had managed to hold onto through the years. A small, wrinkled picture of everyone, Brotherhood and X-Men alike, standing together in front of the X-Mansion. It had been taken right after they had all banned together to defeat Apocalypse.

Three weeks before the mansion was raided and a 'warrent' was put out on the head of every mutant.

Even now, with blood running down his face and into his eyes, he could recognize the faces in the picture. The face of Rayne, who he had never gotten the courage to kiss, and of Ray, who was like a brother to him, stood out the most.

The sight of Bobby, standing in the corner of the picture with his arms wrapped around Jubilee, brought a smile to his face.

A laugh, throaty and wet, bubbled from his throat; blood forced itself in between his lips, following the noise, and his vision swam. But, even as he fell, his eyes never left the photo.


	5. Chapter 5

A/N: I'm alive! And I finally have a working Ipod! Yay!

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Devils Dance Floor - Flogging Molly

She was dangerous.

Everything about her just screamed it. There was a wildness about her that just couldn't be tamed, something that just wasn't completely sane. It was almost, _almost_, like she wasn't really there.

At least, that's what Todd thought when he looked into her eyes. That she wasn't all there. something had happened and it had ruined her, _broke her_, and now she couldn't be fixed.

The others saw it too. That's why they didn't bother with her. It scared them off because they didn't want to 'hurt her worse', _really they were just worried about themselves, the lot of them_, and kept her isolated.

It was what drew Todd closer to her.

Yes, everything about Wanda was dangerous, but that' what he liked about her.

-x-x-

What The Hell - Avril Lavigne

"Y'know, dawg, them teachers o' yours are gonna be seriously pissed off when they find out." Todd's voice the quiet that had settled over the two, tired sounding but more content than Kurt could remember hearing him in a long time.

Said blue mutant, though it wasn't seen thanks to his holo-watch, made a humming noise in the back of his throat and nodded. He knew full well the sort of screeching he was going to come home too, especially if Scott happened to be around at the time. The older mutant would never approve. Granted, it wasn't really something that involved him. Not in the slightest.

"Maybe ya should just spend the night over at the House, Fuzz-Butt. Put off all the screamin' for a bit?" Todd directed a lazy blink in Kurt's direction as he spoke, even being curteous enough to pull the ciggarette out from between his teeth.

Next to him, sprawled out in a similar fashion as Todd on the roof of the school, Kurt broke into a grin. "Ja, maybe I should. Lance won't mind?"

"Screw Lance, yo. He ain't got no right ta be givin' me no grief with the way he's always fawning after Kit-Kat." The Brotherhood boy snorted and moved the barely burning ciggarette back to his mouth.

"Mhm...I guess you're right." Rolling over onto his side so that he was facing the toad-like mutant next to him, Kurt stretched out an arm and grabbed onto greenish-grey flesh. There was a loud crack, a puff of smoke, and when it cleared they were both gone.

Below them, on the grounds of the school they attended, a testament to their mischeif had been left behind; in the form of spray painted pictures and a collage of empty bottles, amidst cars that had been egged and a toilet paper covered flagpole, and feelings that wouldn't be broken no matter the rift between their 'families'.

-x-x-

Change - Carrie Underwood

Lance didn't have much money. There was barely enough in his pockets to scrape together food for the six mutants living in the broken down boarding house they called home and certaintly not enough for extra spending. Pockets were almost always bare.

Scott had more money than he knew what to do with. He didn't need a job, the X-Men was full time work in the Proffesors oppinion, and he didn't need one. Everything he needed, and most of what he wanted, was given to them curtesy of Xavier and the other adults at the Institute. He didn't have to worry about his pockets being thread-bare.

Beggers weren't uncommon in Bayville. People were homeless, they were hungry, they needed help that wasn't given. It wasn't their fault that it happened, for the most part, it was societies. The mayor was only worried about lining his own pockets. Both teams know this.

Scott never stops though. He tried his hardest not to even look at them when he sees them on the corner. The knowledge that it could have been him, almost was him, is too much for him so he ignores them. He keeps walking and he doesn't stop.

Lance always pauses a few feet away from them. He looks them over, decides whether they really need the help or whether they're just faking, he can tell by the look in their eyes, and then roots through his pockets to see what he can find. It's never much, just a couple coins, maybe a penny or two, but he always gives it to them. And then he smiles, wishes them luck, and keeps on walking; doesn't look back because he know they don't want his pity, they just want their lives back. He knows this because, for a time, that was him on the street courner.

But he still has nothing and Scott still has everything and that is how it will always be.


	6. Chapter 6

_Cinderella by Sweetbox_

Where was her prince, her knight in shining armor? The man that was supposed to sweep her off her feet and protect her; save her and love her and tell her she was beautiful? That's the type of guy her fairytales always talked about.

But the only guys that Jean had met so far...Well, they didn't fit into that category. They weren't princes or knights or gentlemen. They were just regular people.

Just like she was; down past the mutation and the powers, past the sights she'd seen and the things she'd done.

Normal.

And, when she watched Amara talk with Tabby and Kitty argue with Lance...Sometime's she wandered if being a Cinderella was all it was cracked up to be.

* * *

_Teenage Dream by Katy Perry_

"I don't care anymore, Scott! I just...I just don't!" Kitty shouted, one hand flying up to weave through her hair; it had come out of it's ponytail when she'd been packing, movements quick and frantic.

"Too bad! It's not just you that this is affecting!" Scott had no problems with shouting right back at her, face pulled down into a scowl. "He's just using you to get at us!"

Kitty paused, hand hovering over her duffle bag, before continuing her packing, albeit slower then before. She could feel the tears welling up in the corners of her eyes again, warm and embarrasing, and she gave the smallest shake of her head.

"That's where you're wrong, Scott."

She left the mansion that night, in a beat up jeep, with the man she loved.

* * *

_Smile by Avril Lavigne_

Tabby was out going. She was wild and fun and filled with so much attitude that even the boys of the Brotherhood were afraid of her most of the time. She did what she wanted, when she wanted, and if you didn't like it then it was your own problem.

But she wasn't happy.

She wasn't home.

And those smiles everyone saw, those saucy smiles, they weren't real.

She wasn't happy so, in turn, she wasn't nice.

But then a shy girl that, in all fairness, didn't know what she was getting into saw her.

Said 'hi'.

And Tabby's world wasn't the same.

* * *

_I Promise You by Vic Mignogen_

They didn't like working for Magneto. It just wasn't a choice to stop. He wouldn't let them and, even if he did, they wouldn't have anywhere to go.

They didn't like following Mystique. She cared for them more then Magneto did, sure, but it wasn't like she was a motherly person. If there wasn't enough food on the table for everyone, it was their fault. Not hers.

They didn't like they way they were forced to live. It was probably the reason why they hated the X-Men so much; because there were so many things that they took for advantage, like Thanksgiving Dinner and clothes that fit and looked nice on them, that it made them sick.

Lance was the oldest out of them all and, as such, he felt like it was his duty to keep them safe. He felt like it was his job to find a way to make things better, no matter the risk. And he would. He would find a way to make everything right.

* * *

_Make It Stop (Septembers Children) by Rise Against_

_Bang...Bang...Bang..._

There wasn't any point in shouting for help. School had ended a good ten minutes ago. Todd was alone, crammed into his locker, with a bloody nose and a black eye. His shoulder, sore and bruising, was jammed against the door, back pressed into the corner, and legs twisted under him.

There wasn't any way that he could kick the door down to get out. Even if he did, Mystique would have his hide for damaging her school. Like she actually had to pay for it. Right.

_Bang...Bang...Bang..._

He wasn't even sure why he was bothering to hit the wall anymore. All it was giving him was a sore fist to go with a sore everything else. Stupid freakin' jocks. If they knew what he was actually able to do...He'd like to see the looks on their faces. Maybe then they'd leave him alone.

_Bang..._

It was just as he was getting ready to give up and wait through the night, which he'd been forced to do a few times before, that the door was yanked out from behind him. Todd let out a startled yelp as his back hit the hard school floor.

"There-you-are-Toady. Lance-was-havin'-a-fit out there. Come on! The jeeps running!"


End file.
